Gold Coast's Michael Gordon is set for a stint on the sidelines due to a blood clot in his leg, as reported by The Daily Telegraph.ย
Gordon has been ordered by a haematologist to stop any heavy-contact exercises and training and has been placed on medication following the shock diagnosis.
The 35-year-old revealed the clot wasn't life threatening but doctors will look to take every precaution as Gordon's family has a concerning history with the condition.
โAt first, I thought, โHoly s***, what do I do?โ,โ Gordon toldย The Daily Telegraph onย Thursday.
โThe doctor couldnโt stress enough the importance of no-contact right now.
โI asked if I could do ballwork and she said, โNo, if you get a bad knock to the head, you could potentially die, so you donโt muck around with itโ.
โEven any big blows to my arms or legs have the potential for internal bleeding.
โMy brother Chris and my aunty have had blood clots, they both had to get surgery to treat it.
โThat was my first fear, that I would have to get surgery, but it doesnโt look like I will need an operation.
โIโve seen doctors and blood experts and they say the clot is pretty superficial, so itโs not life-threatening, but they were worried about it spreading.
โThe big thing is if it becomes deep vein and the risk of it travelling to my lungs or heart. They donโt want it to get to that stage.โ
Gordon, who will miss Sunday's clash against the Broncos, hasn't played for the Titans since the sides 26-18 loss to Cronulla in round nine.
Gordon found concern with the injury when he felt a sudden pain in his calf-region.
โItโs hard to know how it all happened,โ he said.
โBefore the Sharks game, I thought I had a little knock in my calf and I thought maybe it was a cork.
โI didnโt think too much of it, but within a few weeks it felt like something was spreading up my leg.
โItโs really hard to explain. It felt weird. It wasnโt painful as such. It was more a burning sensation and when I explained my symptoms, we had some tests done and it showed the clot.
โAs far as I know there is just the one clot and itโs in my calf and goes up to my inner-thigh as well.
โThe doctors are confident I will be OK, but itโs not something to muck around with.โ
Gordon has high hopes that he will return to the field in a month.
โInitially, itโs a six-week course of medication. Iโve got just over two weeks left of that and then I will have more blood tests,โ he said.
โIf the clot dissolves, I will be right to play, so thatโs why Iโm trying to keep my fitness up.โ
Gee the Titans are having a rough trot with injuries and other issues. Heads up Titans fans, as a Souths member I feel your pain.